English 11 · Week 14 · The American Dream and Belonging
Gatsby and Belonging
Characters reinventing themselves to belong.
- Students will
- Students analyze how a character's choices and reinvention advance the plot and develop theme, and why the author places key choices where they are.
- SEL skill
- Read a character's cues to understand why they change to fit in
- What it looks like
- Students read social cues and consider the cost of changing to fit in.
- Content focus
- Gatsby and belonging
- Format
- Collaborative analysis
Social awareness
Social awareness is taking the view of someone else, with empathy, especially someone whose life differs from yours. More social awareness activities
What you get
A teacher guide with what to say, step by step, plus student pages and a supports page for students with diverse learning needs, including those with IEPs. Print or Project it, or assign it in Google Forms and Google Docs for Google Classroom. Your first 10 activities are free.
Standards
- RL.11-12.3: Reading: Literature, Grades 11 to 12, Standard 3
- CA ELD standards: ELD.PI.11-12.6 Reading and viewing closely
- CA ELA/ELD Framework theme: Meaning Making
- Works with: Any fiction
- Popular books named: The Great Gatsby, The Catcher in the Rye, Death of a Salesman
Fits these textbook chapters
- StudySync Grade 11, Unit 2: The Individual
- myPerspectives English Language Arts Grade 11, Unit 2: The Individual and Society
- HMH Collections Grade 11, Collection 5: An Age of Realism
Textbook names are used only to help you find activities that fit what you teach. RoseThread Connect is not affiliated with these publishers.
More social awareness activities for English 11
- Foundations of American Voice Social awarenessFounding documents and who they included and excluded.
- Voices of Resistance Social awarenessFrederick Douglass and other voices of resistance.
- Immigration Narratives Social awarenessImmigrant experiences in American literature.
- Civil Rights Rhetoric Social awarenessLetter from Birmingham Jail and nonviolent persuasion.
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RoseThread Connect activities are drafted with the help of AI and shaped by educators. Students never have to share anything personal. Our five SEL skills are informed by CASEL's SEL Framework; RoseThread Learning is not affiliated with or endorsed by CASEL.